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M&M Manufacturing, a producer of sheet metal products for the air distribution and ventilation market based in Fort Worth, has been acquired by MiTek Industries Inc., a subsidiary of Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc.,

Jetta Operating Co., a 24-year-old privately held oil and gas company in Fort Worth, and a related entity plan a 26-story mixed-use tower downtown at Taylor and Fifth streets on a site once owned by the Star-Telegram.

Six candidates have filed for the two open seats on the Tarrant Regional Water Board, setting up a battle that could potentially shift the balance of power on the board and the priorities of one of the largest water districts in Texas.

Fort Worth may conduct an audit of existing homestead exemptions in the city to make sure they’re valid and the city isn’t losing property tax money.

The City Council is scheduled to vote April 15 on whether to approve a contract with a vendor. Tax Management Associates, that would audit homestead exemptions. The vendor would be paid a flat fee per exemption removed, once the city collects the tax revenue, the staff told council members in a report.

The amount of the proposed fee was not immediately available.

According to TMA estimates, “the city may achieve a net gain from the audit in the first year even after fees are taken into account,” the staff report said. “Greenville County, S.C., was able to recover almost $2.5 million in additional revenues during the first 18 months after having TMA perform such an audit.”

The report also said, “this audit will provide a long-term benefit by helping ensure that going forward, the city receives the revenue that it is owed.“

The audit will validate application, but won’t change the structure of homestead exemptions, the report said.

If the audit finds exemptions the audit states may be invalid, the property owner would receive an initial notice from TMA, with information about the state’s homestead exemption and who to contact for questions.

If the Tarrant Appraisal District reviews the documentation and agrees the exemption “appears to be in error,” the property owner would receive a second notice stating the district intends to remove the exemption and the property owner has 30 days to protest.

If the exemption is eventually removed, the property owner would see a tax bill within two to six weeks for the amount owned, and would have three to six weeks to pay before penalties and interest apply, the report said.

If the audit finds the exemption has been incorrectly awarded for multiple years, the taxpayer would be required to pay additional taxes for up to the last five years in arrears, the report said.

The homestead exemption allows taxing entities to exempt up to 20 percent of a home’s value for property tax calculations. Fort Worth's is 20 percent.

To claim a homestead exemption for a given year, the property owner and spouse must have owned and occupied the home as their principal residence as of Jan. 1 that year. Only one homestead exemption is allowed per taxpayer.